A Great Summer Storm

Heavy Clouds

Ain’t Mother Nature grand!

An intense summer storm ripped through here a couple hours ago. My pretty blonde and I were out on the deck, she petting the black cat and I putting away the leaf blower after clearing the deck of a week’s accumulation of debris. The wind whipped up seemingly out of nowhere. We knew from the local TV news there were storms in the area but didn’t know they were getting so close.

A Day in the Life of An Auto Writer

Old Chrysler Badge

To tell this story I must first introduce you to a charming cat and a classy automobile. Both play significant roles in this description of a summer day rich in adventure and detail that exemplifies the life of this Midwest auto writer.

Dickens was a beautiful, selectively friendly, buff-orange tomcat – neutered, of course. I say “selectively friendly” because he was exceptionally affectionate with us, particularly my pretty wife, but would disappear anytime strangers intruded on his space. At the time of this story he had been part of our family, which included three other cats, for more than ten years. We had found him at the local animal shelter when he was but a kitten. We knew he would be a great cat when he insisted on rubbing faces with us when we first met.